Thai Airways - Plans to resume flights to the USA next year

[Gaybutton]

THAI hopes to resume flights to US

Carrier needs ICAO and FAA clearance

by Amornrat Mahitthirook

26 Jul 2016

Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) aims to resume flights to the United States, though they would be routed through either Seattle or San Francisco instead of Los Angeles, which was the previous destination.

THAI president Charamporn Jotikasthira said the the timing of the move to resume flights to the US depends on the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) withdrawing its "red flag", and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) upgrading the country's aviation status. He revealed the goal at a seminar on aviation safety held on Monday.

THAI suspended its flights from Bangkok to Los Angeles in October last year in line with its rehabilitation plan following years of losses.

With increasing demand, the national flag carrier is now considering flights to either Seattle or San Francisco because passengers could transfer to other destinations, Mr Charamporn said, adding the flights are expected to be launched next year.

News > General
THAI hopes to resume flights to US

Carrier needs ICAO and FAA clearance

26 Jul 2016 at 04:00 1,691 viewed3 comments
NEWSPAPER SECTION: NEWS | WRITER: AMORNRAT MAHITTHIROOK

THAI ended its flights to LAX (above) 10 months ago as it struggled with reform. At the time, the non-stop Los Angeles to Bangkok flight was the longest in existence, at 17 hours. (Creative Commons via Wikipedia)

Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) aims to resume flights to the United States, though they would be routed through either Seattle or San Francisco instead of Los Angeles, which was the previous destination.

THAI president Charamporn Jotikasthira said the the timing of the move to resume flights to the US depends on the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) withdrawing its "red flag", and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) upgrading the country's aviation status. He revealed the goal at a seminar on aviation safety held on Monday.

THAI suspended its flights from Bangkok to Los Angeles in October last year in line with its rehabilitation plan following years of losses.

With increasing demand, the national flag carrier is now considering flights to either Seattle or San Francisco because passengers could transfer to other destinations, Mr Charamporn said, adding the flights are expected to be launched next year.

Earlier report: US link to relaunch

Thailand was downgraded by the FAA on Dec 1 last year to Category II, meaning Thai-registered airlines were not allowed to open new routes, increase the frequency of existing flights to the US, or change aircraft types deployed on current services.

This came after the ICAO issued a "red flag", indicating significant safety concerns, in June last year following Thailand's failure to meet standards in regulating aviation businesses and granting air operator certificates (AOCs).

"If the Thai aviation regulator solves the problem and the red flag is lifted, the FAA would also allow Thai-registered carriers to fly in and out of the country [US] as usual," he said. The opening of the new route to the US would come when THAI receives two new Boeing aircraft next year, he added.

Mr Charamporn said non-stop flights would be offered on the route, which is a major selling point as no other carriers offer this service. In the past, THAI operated flights to the US with a stop in either Japan or South Korea, he said.

Mr Charamporn restated the Thai national carrier's plan to open a new route to Tehran in October. Iran is a potentially lucrative market for business and tourism with a population of 77.5 million.

THAI also aims to resume services to Moscow which were also suspended last year during the company's restructuring. Seven flights will operate every week, up from four in the original plan.

THAI also is gearing up efforts to improve service to meet passenger demand in a bid to boost market share and ensure aviation safety following the ICAO's decision to issue the red flag, he said.

The airline also launched the Safety Beyond Compliance project last year to boost safety standards in the aviation industry in compliance with European Aviation Safety Agency standards. THAI will also work with Scandinavian airlines to share aviation safety data in a system called Enplore to devise measures to ensure safety.

Referring to the impact of the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union, Mr Charamporn said British travellers may avoid going to the US due to the weakening pound so they might decide to come to Thailand more.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general ... ghts-to-us
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Thai Airways plans to resume direct flights to US next year

by Suchat Sritama

THE NATION
July 26, 2016

Thai Airways International plans to resume flights to the US west coast next year and add more destinations in China after taking a year off to achieve international safety compliance.

The national carrier is also now energetically firing off marketing and sales gimmicks and clearing up flight-management and service issues in order to become profitable and beat the tough competition.

Charamporn Jotikasthira, president of THAI, said yesterday that either Seattle or San Francisco would be returned to its direct-flight network by next year.

One of these two cities will help the airline reclaim market share from long-haul routes. They are better situated for connecting flights than cities further south such as Los Angeles.

The resumption of service to the United States follows the International Civil Aviation Organisation's lifting of the ban on Thai airlines for safety problems.

However, THAI may wait until Thailand's Civil Aviation Department has been upgraded from Category 2 to Category 1 on the US Federal Aviation Administration's list for the same problems.

The airline said it would likely propose the plan to US authorities by itself as it confident of complying with US safety standards.

The flag carrier plans to add more destinations in China after authorities there lifted the ban on THAI over safety reasons, after the ICAO's claims in February of last year that Thailand's aviation practices did not meet international standards.

THAI is also considering resuming flights to Moscow and Tehran in the high season starting in October.

THAI will receive two new Airbus A350 aircraft this year and five Airbus A350s and two Boeing 787s next year.

The airline will implement its new fare system next month and new sales system in the first quarter of next year to enhance competitiveness. The solution is expected to help increase sales especially through the online channel by more than 3 per cent.

Next month will also see a new management system that should help improve particularly connecting flights. The airline expects this new system to increase revenue by 3 per cent.

A new on-board service called "service ring" will be implemented very soon.

Charamporn and his safety-standard staff yesterday updated the media on THAI's latest safety-compliance efforts, saying the airline had been working with Scandinavian Airlines to create a joint plan for safety and risk management.

THAI will begin using this solution in September to prevent unexpected incidents.

All of THAI's 25,000 staff are urged to watch out for any suspicious objects or persons and report them directly to the corporate compliance department established earlier.

Its July 1-20 average load factor was 76.8 per cent, up from the same period last year.

The airline is not worried about the impending divorce of Britain and the European Union, since European tourists still travel to Thailand because it is cheaper than going to the US.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/busines ... 91388.html

[Rin]

Thai air will have a tough time reestablishing air service between the US and Thailand. LA has the largest Thai population outside of Asia. Operating from Seattle or San Francisco won't give them the Thai potential customers that LA provided. The competition between airlines for US to BKK is quite intense. The Chinese airlines quite often have fares in the low $600 RT range. The only advantage Thai would have is if it is non-stop, however, fares previously on their non-stop was never competitive or even close to the one stop service. Thai air is still suffering financially. Reestablishing US service won't help them financially.

[Alex]

I think being non-stop is actually a disadvantage in that particular case, I'm sure I'm not the only one who wouldn't like to sit on a plane for THAT long in one go.

[thaiworthy]

The Chinese airlines quite often have fares in the low $600 RT range.

Also it depends on which destination you choose, schedule and time of year. I looked at Chinese sites a few months back. China Eastern was one of them. I use google flights to start with and didn't see anything for less than $700. Typically, I have also found the low fares are coupled with very long layovers, as much as 12 hours or more. Too long for me. The other caveats are inconvenient connections once you arrive in the gateway city and my personal favorite, no advance seat selection. It's always a trade-off of one thing for another.

The best fare I got for next year was on American (operated by Japan Airlines, a good carrier) with good connections, no long layovers for $841 RT, BKK-LAX. I was also able to get the American Airlines agent to book me an advance seat selection for the outbound. I am currently flying Delta.

Twice yearly trips to the US are a necessity for me. I get all my medications for free through Medicare which would cost me $2880 a year if I bought all them here in Bangkok, without Medicare. If you figure $1100 total RT (which includes my final destination), I am way ahead.

If I recall, the Thai Airways flight from BKK-LAX was an exhausting 17 hours. That's fine if you fly business with 10 mg. of Stilnox. You can't do that in cattle class. Gone are the good ol' days of frequent flyer miles too, compared to now. Grin and bear it.

[Jun]

No doubt some American members can tell me why this might make sense, but viewed from this distance, isn't:
1 The population of Los Angeles vastly in excess of that of San Francisco ? So more catchment.
2 The flight distance from either to Bangkok similar ?

Is LAX is greedy with the landing fees or something?

If they do that, will we see them doing something dumb over here in the UK, such as moving their London flight to Nottingham ?

[Gaybutton]

If they do that, will we see them doing something dumb over here in the UK, such as moving their London flight to Nottingham ?

Maybe Nottingham would be better than London.
Being gay, last time I was in London I was quite disappointed when I found out that "Big Ben" is a clock . . .

[painai2]

Thai Airways is part of the Star Alliance, along with United Airlines. San Francisco is a major hub for United, so connecting with the United network will be convenient. I think San Francisco makes a lot of sense and I'm looking forward to using Thai. Avoiding a stopover in Tokyo would be welcome to me.

[christianpfc]

I think being non-stop is actually a disadvantage in that particular case, I'm sure I'm not the only one who wouldn't like to sit on a plane for THAT long in one go.

I would rather take a long (17 h in this case?) direct flight than change plane (which will add time for the change and for flying a detour, assuming the direct flight is the shortest route).

[thaiworthy]

I would rather take a long (17 h in this case?) direct flight than change plane

The article discusses both "direct flights" and "non-stop flights." This is confusing. A nonstop flight does as its name suggests: flies from one airport to another without stopping. A direct flight, on the other hand, makes stops along the way. Often, passengers traveling on direct flights make a stop at a midpoint airport and remain seated on the plane while some passengers exit and others board.

I have never flown "direct" to the USA. I go through Tokyo, get off the plane and go through security before boarding another plane again. 6-7 hours, then another 10, depending on destination and going east or west. I don't see how a non-stop flight for 17 hours represents any practical time saved. Delta's layover in Tokyo is less than an hour.

Either way, if you are young and can take the strain, you don't ever need to leave your seat en route. To each his own. For some people though, 17 hours to sit still is very uncomfortable. The fact that Thai Airways had discontinued it, seems to bear that fact, coupled with its high cost. "Non-stop" sounds easy, and seems to grab some people. My bones and muscles need to move and stretch on real earth. The last time I sat still that long, someone grabbed a shovel and started to bury me in the earth.

[windwalker]

The fact that Thai Airways had discontinued it, seems to bear that fact, coupled with its high cost. .

Thai Air was using a four engine Airbus (can't recall model) for their non-stop flights which was a gas guzzler. The newer non-stop flights will utilize a Boeing 787 according to my informed source.